Speak out against oil drilling in Brentwood

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Public Comment Period ends 5PM May 19, 2020.
Comments should be submitted in writing to:
Email: syd.sotoodeh [at] dcd.cccounty.us
or
Contra Costa County
Department of Conservation & Development
Attn: Syd Sotoodeh
30 Muir RoadMartinez, CA 94553
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So many of us are focused on the Covid-19 pandemic, trying to maintain our own health and the health of our families and communities. It would be easy to miss other events happening in the Bay Area, particularly events than aren't being covered in the news cycle. While we are focused on our keeping residences clean and safe, or busy fighting for the safety of the homeless, or any number of other pandemic related things, Contra Costa County officials are trying to slip through a oil drilling permit for Powerdrive Oil & Gas Company.

Powerdrive Oil & Gas has 20 oil wells in Kern County, and 12 in Orange County. Now they want to expand their operations to Contra Costa County.The company is owned by the Muraka family (Krishna, Madhuk and Madu Muraka). The managing director of the company is Niclas Biornstad.

Contra Costa County officials have made a preliminary determination that drilling for oil on the site would not require an EIR (Environment Impact Report). They believe that drilling for oil would have "less than significant" impacts to the environment. The location of the Brentwood site is 2,600 feet south of the the intersection of Hidden Ranch Road and Old San Creek Road. This would put the oil field just adjacent to the residential neighborhoods called Brentwood Hills and Brentwood Lake.

While this location was a former oil field in the past, it hasn't been used for this purpose in a considerable amount of time. The parcel is currently zoned for agriculture uses, not for oil drilling. The site is labelled as Assessor Parcel Number 019-120-002. The land was bought by the Muraka family through GBN Partners, a land developer in Danville. For the city of Brentwood's official records, the Muraka family named their land "The Vineyards", presumably to hide their true intentions. The city has the land listed as being agricultural. The state records list the land as being zoned for dry farming. The Muraka family holds no farming ventures in their portfolio, and it can be presumed that they never had any intent to dry farm grape vines. They wanted an oil field, and lied through the process up to this current point, where they applied for an oil permit.

The Negative Declaration of the necessity of an EIR can be contested through public comment. Comments must be received by May 19th by 5PM. The office of the Department Planner does have an email (syd.sotoodeh [at] dcd.cccounty.us) and can take comments through postal mail as well.

Grapes yes, oil field no.